iPhone 5S FUD: DigiTimes Does the Lizzy Borden

16 July 20132,054 viewsNo Comment

Fear, uncertainty and doubt. Whether DigiTimes is consciously doing it or not, their latest iPhone 5S rumor piece is all about FUD. From poor chip yields and an absurdly low Q4 estimate of iPhone shipments, there is a lot to doubt.

DigiTimes, quoting unnamed supply chain sources, claims that the fingerprint recognition and LCD driver chips Apple plans to use in the iPhone 5S have been delayed due to poor yields.

Volume production of fingerprint-recognition and LCD driver chips for the iPhone 5S should have started at the end of June or early in July, but issues related to yield rates will delay commercial production of the two chips [until] the end of July, therefore affecting the initial supply of the iPhone 5S.

The fingerprint recognition chip, designed by AuthenTec, which Apple purchased in July 2012, is being fabbed by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC). DigiTimes claims low yields will likely affect iPhone 5S shipments, resulting delayed fulfillment.

Of course, it bears remembering that Tim Cook has said looking at a single data point in Apple’s supply chain generally won’t tell you much about the big picture — redundant suppliers, plans within plans, etc.

But, back to the FUD.

iPhone 5S: Do the Math

DigiTimes adds that 3 million iPhone 5S units won’t be delivered until Q4. And, during that quarter, Apple will ship 30 million iPhones in total for all models, sources speculate.

Really, does any of this add up? Last year in calendar Q4, Apple sold nearly 48 million iPhones and more than 37 million in Q1 of this year.

And, to close out their write up, DigiTimes quotes Samsung Galaxy S4 Q4 shipping estimates, which are expected to rise.